The Biofile: Ruslan Provodnikov Interview

First Memory of Boxing: "The first time I came to the gym, the local gym, and I try to fight. And I like that I can fight and don't get in trouble for fighting."

Boxing Inspirations: "Right now, what inspires me the most is...I know that there are fans that want to fly from another continent to come and see me fight. They want to spend their money and their time to fly, that for just to come and see me fight. When I'm walking to the ring, I'm thinking about that. Because I know that I can't let them down. I can't take a fight easy and let people down."

Nickname: The Siberian Rocky.

Last Book Read: "Right now during training I'm reading the book by Alexander Pushkin, it's a famous Russian book. I also read a lot of Russian poems during training."

Current Car: "I always drove, and to this day, drive a Lada, a Russian car. After I became world champion, the parents of my manager gave me a present of a Chevy Camaro, which I've actually always wanted, it was a dream car for me. And now it's being sent to Russia and I'm gonna drive it over there. (Color?) Black. It has gold Siberian Rocky stickers on it. It's really nice. Custom made for me."

First Job: "When I was eleven, as a difficult child, I was made to work at a small school and I had to clean and take care of any problems that they had. It was a job for kids who got in a lot of trouble."

Greatest Sports Moment: "The fight with Timothy Bradley."

Most Painful Moment: "When in the Timothy Bradley fight, Timothy Bradley's hand was raised the winner."

Which Fights Were You At Your Very Best: "My last two fights...Bradley and (Mike) Alvarado."

First Famous Boxer You Met Or Encountered: "Lennox Lewis. It was on the undercard of the Freitas-Diaz. It was my first fight in the United States. I came to the weigh in and Lennox Lewis and Don King were there. It was my first encounter (2007)."

Why Do You Love Boxing: "Boxing gave me everything that I have today in life. It's given me an education, it's given me a life, it gives me a sense of mind that now I can give back to the kids, the people, to show them a good example. That's what it's all about. That's why I love boxing."

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